What Is Media Management?
(p. 13)
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Reasons to Use Media Management
(p. 14)
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What You Need to Know to Manage Your Media
(p. 15)
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Media Management Steps in Final Cut Pro
(p. 15)
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Strategies for Media Management
(p. 16)
What Is Media Management?
Media management is a term used for several related tasks throughout post-
production. In general, any task that relates to processing your media is considered to
be media management, such as capturing, compressing, copying, moving, or deleting
media files. However, media management also refers to keeping track of your media
files via clip properties such as log notes, comments, scene number, shot/take number,
and so on.
The flexibility and power of media management in Final Cut Pro stems from one
simple fact: a clip and its media file are treated independently. In Final Cut Pro, a more
accurate description of media management would be clip and media management. What
makes the separation of clips and media files so powerful? Here are a few examples:
 Reconnecting clips to new media files: You can create new media files for your project
at any time, and reconnect the clips in your project to the new media files.
 Direct access to your media files: You can directly access your QuickTime media files
in the Finder at any time. You can also easily create clips by dragging media files
directly into your project via the Browser. In fact, you can even edit by dragging
media files from the Finder directly into the Timeline or Canvas.
14
Part I
Media and Project Management
 Logging clip information without media: You can modify clip properties such as log
notes, comments, labels, and even In and Out points without the associated media
files. This means you can organize your clips and sequences even though your
current editing system may not have the media files.
 Trading projects without media files: A Final Cut Pro project file contains clips and
sequences, but not media files. Because a project file is so small, you can email or
post your project file online. Anyone who has the corresponding media files can
open the project file and reconnect the clips to the local media files.
Making a movie is a tremendous logistical undertaking. It’s the execution of the details
that ultimately determines the quality of the finished product. What does it matter how
good the lead actress’s performance was in the third take of scene two if you can’t find
it among a thousand other shots? And what use is a week of fine-tune editing, frame
by frame, if the final sequence is improperly assembled by the negative cutter because
of a faulty edit decision list that you provided?
Final Cut Pro has incredibly versatile media management options, allowing you to
customize your workflow to fit the needs of your project.